A Strange Relationship
by The Entity of Darkness
Summary: Now a series of one shots. First Static Shock story. No spoilers from Healing Earth. Hotstreak/FrancisxOC and RichiexOC
1. Chapter 1

Okay, so I'm new to the whole Static Shock Fanfiction thing. I recently began watching the episodes online and realized how much I missed the show. So, I decided to write a fanfiction. This is actually a one-shot. I had wanted to get people's opinion and if the reviews were positive, I would write a full fanfiction with chapters and everything. The pairings would be RichieXOC and Francis/HotstreakXOC. I hope you enjoy it and I hope that Francis is in character.

Disclaimer: I don't own Static Shock or it's characters.

**.:Line Break:.**

It was a warm, sunny afternoon in Dakota and the students of Dakota Union High had long since left for home. All except one.

Katrina Blake was hunched over one of the school's flower beds. Though both the flower beds and the flowers in them were new, the plants were already wilted and dying.

Katrina's waist length chocolate brown hair was tied back in a messy ponytail, her bright ocean blue eyes narrowed in concentration. She was wearing her usual blue T-shirt with the large black rose imprinted on the front, her jeans, and her black sneakers, all of which had bits of dirt here and there. On her hands were dirty green gardening gloves.

Wiping the sweat from her forehead, she turned her attention back to the flower bed. Sighing, she gazed sadly at the plants she and the school's environmental club had planted. It was obvious that the janitor had neglected to water them.

_"Which means that someone will have to stay after school from now on to water them." _she thought to herself.

The rest of the club had offered to help Katrina, but she had stupidly told them that she could handle it herself.

"Now I wish I had taken up their offer. While I do love gardening, this is a little much, even for me." she muttered. She began wishing that she had at least asked her sister, Kathrine, Richie, and Virgil to help her, or even keep her company while she worked.

"Not that they would even be able to stay very long," she whispered bitterly to herself, envious of her friends, "They have to patrol the city tonight. I wish my powers weren't so useless." Katrina shook her head in an attempt to rid herself of the negative thoughts, "That's not entirely true. Healing is still a useful ability." She then sighed, still not feeling any better, "It's just not useful where it counts. In a battle."

Shaking her head again, she looked back to the flowers. "Speaking of powers, let's see how well they work on plants."

Katrina placed her hands on either side of what used to be a red tulip, careful not to touch the brittle brown plant. Taking a deep breath, she began concentrating on the health of the tulip. When nothing happened, Katrina frowned. She removed her gloves and threw them to the ground, deciding that they were in the way, before putting her hands back in their original position. Once again she breathed in deeply and focused on the plant. This time, her hands started to glow a faint green, causing Katrina to smile. The green glow extended from her hands and outlined the tulip in the dim light. Slowly, the color returned to the plant until it was back to full health, like it had never even wilted in the first place.

With a wide grin, Katrina clapped her hands together, inwardly cheering at her success. It was short lived when a row of four tulips burst into flames next to her, turning them to ash. Katrina stared at them in disbelief. "Oh, no!" she groaned, cursing her luck, "Now I'll have to plant new ones."

"Wouldn't you have to do that anyway? I mean, they're all kinda dead."

Katrina almost growled in annoyance, now knowing why the flowers combusted and who was responsible. "Francis..." she groaned, exasperated, "I can put up with you glaring at all the boys who come near me, I can deal with you flirting with me, I can even tolerate you following me around school, but please, **please**, do **not **set my flowers on fire."

"First of all, I told you that my name is Hotstreak-"

"And I told you that I refuse to call you such a ridiculous name."

"Second," he continued, ignoring her outburst, "The flowers are dead. You'd have to plant new ones anyway. You should be thanking me for helping you."

Katrina scowled at Francis as he leaned up against the wall of the school. "Francis, the next time you think of a good way to help me with gardening, do the opposite."

Francis walked over and crouched down next to her, eyeing the single healthy tulip with curiosity. "I thought they were all dead. What's with this one?"

"I was using my powers to revive the flowers. Or at least, that's what I was** trying** to do before someone went and **torched** them!" she gazed at him in disbelief, "Honestly, is this how you try to win over the girls you like? By setting their hard work on fire?"

Francis shrugged, knowing Katrina wouldn't be upset long seeing as how it was an easy fix. Saying something stupid, or what she perceived to be stupid, could result in a full blown lecture and Katrina storming away to let him think about what he had done. She had a lot of patience for him though, knowing that it was difficult for him to interact normally.

Francis had never _had_ to win over girls before. Usually they were either afraid of him, or were easy. Katrina was neither. She had claimed many times that, if needed, she could kick his butt, which he had yet to see. She also often preached that relationships and love were special, and that people who went around sleeping with everyone they saw made her sick. Katrina was innocent, yet somehow knew the horrors of the real world. She was kind and compassionate, normally someone he wouldn't waste his time on. However, she was so different, so interesting, that Francis found himself drawn to her. She wasn't afraid of him, she would willingly spend time with him and show him kindness that he was completely unfamiliar with.

Still, all he had ever known was violence, destruction, and intimidation. Communicating with others was still difficult for him. Though she hadn't changed him all that much from when she met him. He just didn't do anything too major. Francis would still make fun of Virgil and Richie, though he now refrained from hitting them, he'd pick fights with Kathrine since she was the only one who would take him on even with his powers. He still even set things on fire and occasionally stole things, though discretely as to avoid Katrina's lectures. Hey, he never said he'd go completely straight.

"So, have you changed your mind yet?"

"Have you stopped breaking the law yet?"

"...So, your powers work on plants, too?"

Katrina smiled knowingly at the sudden change in topic. She knew that he now knew that she would not go out with him until he cleaned up his act. Though it still surprised her that he was still trying. Francis seemed like the kind of guy to just take what he wanted when he wanted it. She was pleasantly surprised to discover that she was wrong.

"Apparently so. It seems I can heal both people and plants." she said, moving onto another tulip. Putting her hands around the once white tulip, she began using her powers. Francis watched with interest as her glowing hands revived the flower.

"So, where's the rest of the club?" he asked, trying to make conversation.

"Them? I told them that I would take care of the flowers myself. Apparently, the janitor didn't feel like watering them so they're either dead or dying." she explained, turning her head to look at him.

"What? Why? What about Frieda and that chick that Hawkins likes? They're in the club too, and they just left you with all this because you said you could handle it?" For the life of him, Francis could not figure out why Katrina was so nice. If it were him, he would have told the club to do it themselves while he left, and maybe set their work on fire, too. In his opinion, there was a such thing as being too nice, and Katrina was at times.

Katrina sighed at him, not surprised that he didn't remember her friend's name. "That "chick that Hawkins likes" has a name. It's Daisy. I told her, Frieda, and the rest of the club that I had it all under control. Besides, I've never been curious about my powers after the Big Bang until I came to this school, I wanted to see what else I could do with them. I can't exactly do that with other people around."

"You're not a superhero like some of the other bang babies, why don't you let others know since your powers aren't dangerous?" Francis asked.

Katrina gave him a sly smile, "And how do you know I'm not a super hero?"

Francis smirked, "Because you're the only Bang Baby I've met or even heard of that has healing abilities, and there isn't a superhero in Dakota with your powers."

Katrina smiled before putting on a look of mock horror, "Oh my goodness! Francis Stone is using logic? Oh no, the world's going to end! We'll all perish!" She wouldn't say it out loud, but Katrina loved teasing Francis, partially because she knew that she was the only one who could get away with it without him trying anything violent.

He rolled his eyes, "Yeah, yeah, laugh it up. Despite what you think I do think things through."

Katrina stared at him blankly.

"Sometimes," he amended, "I sometimes think things through."

It was her turn to roll her eyes as she tried not to laugh. She liked this relationship she had with Francis and she liked how he usually made her feel so happy and content. Though no one would believe her if she told them that she liked spending time with him or that Francis was actually a really nice guy. Her sister looked at her like she was crazy the first time she told her.

Francis looked back at the flower she was working on and instantly his eyes went wide. "Trina, look!"

Katrina blinked at the use of her nick name and looked down at her work, gasping at what she saw. The tulip was now back to full health like the previous one, but it was no longer white like it once was. The tulip had turned a shocking blue.

"What on Earth?" she asked, more to herself than to Francis, as she stared at the plant in amazement. She plucked it up and began analyzing it, wondering how it happened.

"I didn't know you could do that." Francis said, looking just as amazed as Katrina.

"Hey, what a coincidence! Neither did I."

Francis stared a moment longer before turning back to Katrina. "What else can you do?"

"I don't know." she responded, placing the tulip behind her ear, "But I'm going to find out."

Katrina looked around the area, her eyes landing on a rose bush up against the school wall. The two walked over to it, quickly making sure that no one was watching. Like the other flowers, the roses were brown and wilted, but that didn't stop Katrina. She plucked a rose from the bush, mindful of the thorns, and began restoring it's health as she had the others. Once that was done, she concentrated on the flower, though her focus was no longer on it's health. Hands glowing brighter than before, she twirled the rose in her fingers, watching as the petals fell and drifted away. It wasn't long before Katrina was holding a whip with thorns.

"That's awesome!" Francis said, "But I thought your powers were healing. How come it changed the flowers?"

Katrina thought for a moment, staring intently at the weapon in her hands. "Maybe..." she mused, "Maybe I've just been misunderstanding my powers this whole time."

"What do you mean?" he asked, feeling clueless as he leaned back up against the wall.

"I mean,I think that healing is just one thing I can do with my powers. I don't think healing is my power, rather it's the ability to manipulate living matter." she explained. He could see the wheels in Katrina's head turning so he stayed silent. "From what I can tell, if I channel my energy into a living thing, I can control them into doing what I want. When I heal people, I'm actually controlling their cells into working faster to heal injuries. I bet that with enough work I could even learn to control animals as well as plants."

"What about people?" he asked.

Katrina shook her head, "Theoretically, I could, but I don't want to. No one should have that much power and I don't want to go crazy with it like Ebon."

Francis nodded, knowing she was right.

Suddenly, a huge grin spread across her face, "With this, I could be a superhero!"

He stared at her for a moment, not comprehending why she had just told someone like him, someone who was a known criminal, that piece of information. "Why are you telling me this?"

She gave him a sweet smile. "I trust you." she admitted softly, "I know that you're not the person everyone makes you out to be. I trust you."

He would never admit it, especially to himself, but her words touched him and made him happy. Instead of expressing this, he just groaned. "Great, that's just what I need. Another superhero on my case!"

She stuck out her tongue, "Well, stay out of trouble and we won't have that problem. I can't wait, soon I'll finally be able to make a difference!" Her happiness disappeared when her eyes landed on the still wilted flowers. "First, though, I need to make a difference with these flowers." Katrina sighed, "Honestly, was it too much to ask that the janitor water the flowers?"

"Do you want me to stay until your done?"

Katrina gave him another sweet smile, overjoyed by his offer. After all, she was the one in the club, not him. "I'd like that. In fact, I'd like that a lot."

Katrina chatted happily with Francis as she worked and what she thought would take hours only took thirty minutes.

The next morning, when Katrina walked into school with Frieda and Daisy, they were met with an amusing sight. The janitor was watering the now healthy flowers with a panicked expression on his face. Leaning up against one of the school walls, glaring at the old man was none other than Francis. It didn't take long for Katrina to put two and two together.

Bursting into a fit of giggles, she grinned, shaking her head at Francis. _"Though you're not the same thug I first met, you haven't really changed, have you Francis?" _she thought.

Catching sight of her, Francis smirked and winked at her.

She let out another laugh, waving back at him. _"But I wouldn't change that about you even if I could."_

**.:Line Break:.**

That was a lot longer than I thought it would be. Anyway, I'm only a beginner when it comes to writing, so I'd appreciate any constructive feed back. I'd also like to know what you think and if I should write a full fanfiction. This, I think, would go into it as a chapter. Please review.


	2. A Complicated Relationship

Okay, so you've probably noticed that the status of _A Strange Relationship_ has changed and that's because while I'm getting my fanfic ideas together I'll be writing and posting one-shots for constructive feed back and tips to improve. This will now be a mixture of Hotstreak/FrancisxOC and RichiexOC one-shots. Some will take place before the couples get together, and some will take place after. This particular one is for Richie. Now, I've read that in the comic book Richie was gay, but I know that many people, myself included, wish that he wasn't. So I tried to compromise and tried to add the drama of a teenager questioning their sexuality to try to make everyone happy. Please tell me what you think because it seems harder for me to keep Richie in character than Francis. This may be put into my fanfiction as a chapter. I'm not entirely happy with this one.

Disclaimer: I don't own Static Shock or it's characters.

**.:Line Break:.**

Richard Foley was a genius. There was no denying that. He was the top student in almost all of his classes, all except one.

"Come on Richie, conjugating the 3rd "io" in the perfect tense in Latin isn't that hard."

_"Easy for you to say." _he thought bitterly.

Richie had decided to take Latin that year so he could have a challenge. Unfortunately, he may have bitten off more than he could chew as the language was proving to be more difficult than he had originally thought.

As he sat in the school's library Richie sighed and glanced at the girl sitting next to him, his tutor and friend.

Kathrine Blake held his work in her hands, going over his mistakes. Her waist length brown hair was tied back in a pony tail so it wouldn't fall in her face as she worked, her emerald green eyes narrowed in thought. She wore her usual black T-shirt with the silver skull and cross bones print on the front as well as her black skinny jeans and black sneakers. Her silver locket with the dragon design sat around her neck.

Kathrine was actually the top Latin student, as she seemed to have a natural talent for learning languages, which was why she offered to tutor her friend. At first it had been difficult for her to spend so much time around Richie due to events that happened shortly before his Latin troubles began.

Kathrine, having developed feelings for him over the several months they had known each other, confessed to the genius. Unfortunately for her, Richie had told her the words all girls dread to hear when confessing to a crush. He told her he was gay. Though utterly heartbroken, Kathrine did not let anyone, except her sister who always knew when something was wrong, know that. Time passed, but she didn't stop loving Richie, she just stopped letting it show so at the very least she could keep his friendship. Despite this, even though she thinks it's impossible, she still wishes she could have a relationship with him because she knows she loves him and she has never been more sure of anything in her entire life.

However, little did she know that Richie was struggling with feelings of his own. Shortly after he told Kathrine he was gay, he began having certain...dreams...about her. These dreams were frequent, happening almost every night, and they were causing him to question his sexuality. He liked guys, he knew that for a fact, but he was also attracted to Kathrine. Not only was he questioning his attraction towards her, but his feelings towards her as well. Was she just a friend to him or was she more? He was so confused. He didn't talk to his parents, as he had already told them awhile back that he was gay. He didn't want his father to tell he didn't know what he wanted and basically give him a hard time. Naturally, Richie had turned to Virgil and Mr. Hawkins for help, since they already knew of his preferences. He had even gone to Kathrine's younger sister Katrina in search of help. They had all told him the same thing though, which was basically the cliché of "follow your heart".

_"Yeah, right." _Richie thought with a snort, _"That's a lot easier said than done."_

It was obvious to everyone but them that they were tip-toeing around each other and it would be easier for everyone if they would, "just kiss and make out", as Virgil told Katrina, who had readily agreed with him. They tried not to let their feelings get in the way of their friendship, but they would cause awkward moments or inadvertently hurt the other person. Oblivious to the others feelings, they acted as though nothing had ever happened between them. Katrina had told Virgil that, at the moment, perhaps that was what's best.

"Richie," Kathrine began, leaning over to show him his paper, "What does _'conficio'_ mean?"

The blond's eyebrows knitted together as he thought about the answer. "It means...to take." he guessed, his answer sounding more like a question.

She sighed, shaking her head. "No, you're thinking of _'capio'_. _'Conficio' _means _'to finish'_." she explained before pointing to another problem on the paper, "Also, _'conficio'_ in the first person singular in the imperfect tense for the active voice is _'conficiebam'_. When going to the passive voice it becomes _'conficiebar'_."

Richie groaned in frustration, his head falling to the table with a loud thud. "I'm a genius and I can't even handle a simple language!"

Kathrine smiled sympathetically, a rarity considering her normally sarcastic and attitude. She rubbed his back in a comforting manner, something she did for her sister whenever she was upset, no noticing how Richie's muscles tensed under his baggy hoodie. "Don't be so hard on yourself, Latin is a tricky language." she reassured him, secretly thinking that he looked cute when he was frustrated, "Hey, no ones perfect."

He turned his head to the side, blue eyes gazing up at her as he relaxed under her touch. "I'm not trying to be perfect."

"Really?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at him, "You could have fooled me with the way you carried on in math about how you got a 'B' on your test. Honestly, you reminded me of how the girls in gym class act when they break a nail."

"I didn't get a 'B', I got an 'A'. The teacher made a grading mistake and he corrected it." he then frowned and sat up, causing Kathrine to remove her hand from his back, "And I do **not** act like a girl."

"Mm-hm." she hummed, clearly not buying it, "So, you're telling me that you **didn't **totally scream like a girl on our way to math the other day? I guess it was just you practicing your singing then."

"I nearly fell down the stairs!" he insisted, "And I didn't scream."

"Ohhh, so I must have imagined that you wrapped your arms around me to stop your fall and, in the process, shrieked in my ear. Hmm, then I wonder why my ears were ringing?"

"You do realize that you yourself are a girl, right?" he asked, trying to change the subject, "Don't you find it offensive when people compare others to girls as an insult?"

She only shrugged, "Not really. Besides, I'm not really like those girls. In a way, I guess you could say that I'm the best of both worlds. But we're getting off topic. Like I was saying, no ones perfect and no one expects you to be perfect. You shouldn't expect yourself to be perfect either. Everyone has weak points. I suck at algebra, Katrina has trouble with geometry, Virgil needs help with history every now and again, and Francis..."

"Stinks at everything except gym?" Richie supplied with a smile.

Kathrine grinned, "Exactly. My point is that no one is good at everything, not even meta-human geniuses."

Richie's smile dropped as he looked back at his work. "I get what you're saying, Kat, but I just can't seem to get it." he said, burying his head in his hands, "I'm going to fail this class."

Kathrine gave him a hard stare, not liking his attitude. "Fine then." she said, voice cold, "I guess we're done here. Thanks for wasting my time."

Richie's head snapped up to look at her, hurt that she would say something so callous. "Hey, wait a minute! You're my tutor, you're supposed to help me!"

"And I'm trying, Richie." she responded, a bit testy, "But if you're so hell bent on failing before trying than there's little point in me teaching you anything. If you keep doing things half-assed and keep telling yourself that you're going to fail, then you really will fail. You shouldn't give up on something half way because you're afraid of failing because, guess what Richie? Everyone does, more than once in their life. The point is not to dwell on that, pick yourself up, learn from your mistakes, and move on. If you don't finish what you start and just give up half way, I can promise that one day you'll regret not following it through to the end."

Richie stared at Kathrine in disbelief. He had forgotten that while half of everything that came out of her mouth was sarcasm, every once in awhile she'd say something that made a person stop and really think. Kathrine always seemed to know what to say or how to act to get him to see what he should or needed to do. Sometimes she'd be reassuring, sometimes she would use what she referred to as "tough love", and sometimes she'd just sit and listen quietly to him until he realized what he needed to do. Somehow, she always knew what he needed to hear.

"You're right. I'm sorry." he said quietly when her words sunk in.

Kathrine smiled at him, glad that he understood. "Good. Now then," she began, handing him his paper, "Are you ready to try again?"

His lips twitched into a smile as he took his paper from her, "I think so."

As he worked, a look of intense concentration made its way on to his face. Kathrine placed her elbow on the table, resting her chin in her hand as she gazed at Richie. Admiration and love shimmered in her emerald eyes.

She was glad it only took a little push to get Richie back on track. One of the things she loved was that he didn't give up on anything, even if now and then he needed a little shove in the right direction. But then again, didn't everyone?

A sigh of longing escaped her lips, feeling a pang of sadness in her heart. "Te amo care." she said, knowing full well that he wouldn't know what it meant.

Richie stared at her blankly, proving to her that she was right. "What?"

Kathrine smiled, finding his confused expression cute. She waved her hand at him, dismissing the question. "Oh, it's nothing. Nothing important, anyway."

He frowned, narrowing his eyes at her accusingly. "Are you making fun of me in a different language again?"

She couldn't help but chuckle, "Who? Me? I'd never dream of doing such a horrible thing, especially to my linguistically challenged friend."

"You **were**, weren't you? I'm having enough trouble with languages as it is! If you insist on teasing me at least do it in English so I can defend myself!"

"Aw, but why?" she asked playfully, "You're so cute when you're flustered."

Richie blushed and began sputtering, attempting to find a response. Much to his dismay, Kathrine only laughed at him.

_"I know that you'll never love me, Richie,"_ she thought sadly, _"But I think I can live with that as long as I can still be near you like this. As long as I can stand by your side, if only as your friend, I'll be okay."_

**.:Line Break:.**

** Te amo care**, I believe translates to **I love you dearly** in Latin, or at least it should.

Now, I know Richie's a genius, but I don't think that he'd never have trouble with anything. Latin is a hard language to learn, never let anyone tell you otherwise. I'd like to know what people think of this. Please take the time to review.


	3. Sick

For the past few weeks I've been sick as a dog, so I wrote this one-shot to apologize for the lack of updates to _Healing Earth_.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own _Static Shock_.

**Warning: **Foul language.

**.:Line Break:.**

Katrina Blake rushed over to Angela Gore's house one Saturday afternoon after receiving a phone call from the officer that Francis was ill. Angela told her that she had an errand to run and needed someone to keep an eye on him and his condition. Needless to say, Katrina was out the door before the conversation was even over.

She darted down the sidewalk, part of her wishing she had a bike or some other form of transportation that was faster than running. Despite that, she pressed on without taking a break.

By the time Katrina reached Angela Gore's house, she was completely out of breath. She tried to compose herself as she knocked on the front door.

Angela answered almost immediately, raising an amused brow upon seeing Katrina hunched over, panting. "You didn't waste any time getting over here, did you?"

Katrina straightened up, smiling sheepishly.

The blond woman patted the young girl's head, smiling. "You're good for him."

Katrina blushed as Officer Gore led her inside. She didn't have to ask to know what she meant.

"So, uh, how is he?" The healer glanced at the stairs, knowing that her boyfriend's bedroom was up there. Francis had told her once that he didn't get sick often, but when he did it was usually bad.

"I had a doctor come by this morning. He said that if it was anyone else, he would have been concerned with how high his temperature was. Since Francis' powers cause his average body temperature to be a little hotter than other people, he said that it made sense for his temperature to be as high as it was due to his fever. He said that with some sleep Francis would be fine." Angela sighed and rubbed the back of her neck with her right hand, "Kid scared the living daylights out of me."

Katrina caught a flash of white as the blond moved her hand and instinctively grabbed the woman's wrist. Angela's right hand was wrapped in thick white gauze, going all the way down to her wrist. Concerned blue eyes met Officer Gore's green ones.

"What on earth happened to your hand?"

The blond chuckled drily, "This morning at about six a.m., I woke up to the smoke detector going off. I ran to Francis' room on a hunch. He was thrashing around and his body and bed sheets were smoking. Obviously, I panicked. I had the foresight to grab a towel so I could guide him to the bathtub, but was in too much of a hurry to make sure that it was around him securely so I wouldn't burn myself. It was just an accident and the doctor said that the burn wasn't serious, so it's okay."

"Did you run it under cold water immediately afterwards?"

The older woman wore an expression similar to that of a child who had been caught with their hand in the cookie jar. "No." she admitted in a small voice, "I was trying to get Francis situated and reminding myself that I couldn't fill the tub with icy water or he'd go into shock."

Katrina sent her a scolding look.

Angela pouted, slipping her hand out of the girl's grasp. "Oh, enough of that! I already got the same look from both the doctor and Francis."

The healer sighed and reluctantly let the issue go. "So, what are these errands you need to run?"

"Remember how I told you when I found Francis this morning his bed sheets were smoking?" she paused and Katrina nodded, "Well, they're completely charred. I have to go out and buy new ones. Luckily, his pillows and mattress were spared. Anyway, I was hoping that you'd look after him in the meantime."

"Of course I will."

Angela smiled brightly and patted the girl's shoulder with her good hand, "Thanks, I appreciate it. Francis is still upstairs in the bathroom. I don't know if he's still asleep or not, but I'm sure he'll be happy to see you. Oh, and even though his fever dropped from what it was this morning, I wouldn't recommend touching him directly. You know how he is. If he ever hurt you, even if it was an accident, he'd kick himself for weeks." Officer Gore rolled her eyes at the last part.

Sometimes, Francis was just ridiculous.

Katrina smiled and nodded, knowing firsthand how silly her boyfriend could be. She watched as Angela grabbed her car keys, waved at her, and left. The healer waited until the front door had shut before venturing up the stairs.

When she came to Francis' room, she glanced inside, seeing as the door was wide open. The room's only widow was open, its curtains drawn back so the smoke that was there that morning could escape. The bed was stripped bare, its pillows carelessly tossed to the floor. The white mattress showed faint black marks, but was otherwise intact, just as Officer Gore had said.

Katrina frowned at the scene, knowing that, even though the damage was accidental, Francis probably felt guilty about it. Angela Gore treated the bang baby like he was her own son, and Francis had come to care a great deal about the police officer in return.

Years of crimes, hardships, and a bad reputation had caused Francis to be very hard on himself if he did something wrong or made a mistake. Although what happened to the bed, not to mention Angela's hand, was in no way his fault, Katrina knew that that was how the pyro would see it.

Katrina continued walking down the upstairs hall when she came across a grey cord plugged into an outlet just outside the bathroom. Following the cord inside, she saw that it was attached to a fan that was blowing cool air towards the bathtub.

The healer felt a wave of pity for her boyfriend when she finally saw the stated he was in. Francis sat in the tub wearing only his boxers, a small amount of steam rising from the heated bathwater. His usually spiked up crimson and blond streaked hair was damp and clung to his flushed face and neck. His normally alert emerald green eyes were clenched shut, indicating that he was asleep, but not at rest. His mouth hung open, his breathing coming out in heavy pants.

Though the thing that surprised Katrina was the fact that Francis was sweating. Since the bang baby was practically a human thermostat, he didn't need to sweat. All he had to do was adjust his body heat to a comfortable level and he had nothing to worry about.

_"I guess being sick doesn't give him a lot of control over his powers."_ she thought, remembering Officer Gore's words.

Quietly, so as not to disturb Francis, Katrina made her way to the edge of the tub and sat down. She then noticed a bowl of water sitting next to her, ice cubes floating on the surface with a folded up rag draped over the brim.

Taking pity on her boyfriend, the healer dipped the rag in the bowl and proceeded to wipe the sweat from Francis' face, neck, and shoulders.

The redhead groaned softly, unconsciously leaning into the cool and gentle touch. Eyes flickered from beneath his lids and slowly slid open, greeted by the sight of a smiling Katrina wringing out the now warm rag.

"Hey, Frankie." she greeted quietly, using the pet name that only she was allowed to call him. She intentionally kept her voice low, not knowing if he had a headache or not.

Hazy green eyes drifted over his girlfriend's form, brows furrowing. Katrina could see the wheels in his head turning ever so slowly. She wasn't sure if it was his illness, the medicine he was probably on, or the fact that he just woke up that was impeding his thought process.

_"Probably all three."_ she guessed.

"What are you—" he stopped, clearing his throat in a n attempt to make his voice sound less harsh, "What are you doin' here?"

His words were slurred slightly, eyes half lidded as he spoke. It was completely different from how he was normally. Normally his words were clear and his eyes were wide open and alert. It made her sad to see him so vulnerable, but she was also happy that he trusted her enough to not try to hide the fact that he was sick, as she thought he would have.

"I'm going to take care of you." she replied as she leaned on the edge of the tub, her tone playful, "Why, aren't you happy to see me?"

"Aren't you afraid that you'll get sick, too?" He was sure he already knew the answer, but asked anyway.

"Nope. You know how with my powers my body will heal itself automatically when I'm injured? I'm pretty sure it also applies to illnesses too because I haven't been sick once since the Big Bang and I've even taken care of Kathrine multiple times when she wasn't feeling well. And besides, even if that wasn't the case, it wouldn't stop me from taking care of you when you need me."

Yeah, he had thought as much. Same old Katrina.

"Where's Angela?" he asked, the fuzzy details of the morning crawling to the front of his mind.

"She went out shopping. She said that you needed new bed sheets."

He nodded once, falling silent for a few moments. Francis glanced at Katrina, sliver of guilt that she knew would be there flashing in his eyes before he turned away.

"…You see her hand?"

His voice was so quiet that, had she not been sitting right next to him, the healer never would have heard his question.

"It was wrapped in gauze, but the doctor said that the burn wasn't serious."

Francis said nothing, not even showing Katrina any sign that he had even heard her. Even though she couldn't see his face, she knew that he was mentally berating himself. She wished that she could hold his hand to comfort him, but if he was still too hot to touch and she got hurt as a result it would just make Francis feel worse.

"She knows it was an accident, Francis."

"…"

"It wasn't your fault. You had no control over it and she knows that."

"…"

"She's not mad at you, you know. She's just worried about you and wants you to get better."

Francis scoffed. "She's stupid. Should've run her hand under cold water when it happened, not worry about me like an idiot."

Although the words were harsh and rude, the healer knew that he was just angry at himself and concerned for the well being of his caretaker. Francis wasn't good with words or being open with his feelings, something that those close to him, Katrina and Angela included, learned and accepted early on.

"Don't be so hard on her, Francis. When it comes to loved ones, we all tend to push our own needs, feelings, and safety to the back burner. Everyone's done it and, before you say anything, yes, you've done it, too."

Francis, who had turned to face her to protest, shut his mouth with an audible click, a frown pulling at his lips. "When?" he demanded, "When have I _ever_ done _anything_ like that?"

Katrina grinned, amused by her boyfriend's need to always look like the bad boy when, in truth, he was actually very sweet.

"Do you remember that day I passed out in class because I had been sleep deprived from patrolling the city so late at night all week?"

He nodded slowly, not knowing where Katrina was headed with the story.

"Not only did you take me to the nurse and ask that she let me sleep there for the rest of the day, you also went to all of my classes with my backpack over your shoulder, despite how important your reputation is to you, to collect the notes and homework I was missing."

He rolled his eyes, "How does that count?"

The blue eyed girl raised a brow, "Francis… my backpack is purple with hot pink roses on it. My folders and binders are covered in butterflies, flowers, or kittens."

"…"

"Kathrine told me that at least ten people openly laughed at you, five called you gay to your face, and one person walked up to you and made a whip cracking noise."

"…"

"Though I suppose you got them back the next day when several people's lunches inexplicably turned to ash."

This caused Francis to smirk. While he no longer beat people to a pulp, excluding criminals, he did get back at those who disrespected him or the people he cared about. And who said Francis Stone couldn't be discrete?

Katrina couldn't help but smile and shake her head fondly at how pleased her boyfriend looked at that last statement.

"How are you feeling?"

The pyro's smirk fell as he was reminded of the reason why he was sitting in the bathtub in the first place. His throat was sore, his nostrils burned, his head ached, his skin was slick and sticky with sweat, and no matter how long he slept he always woke up feeling exhausted. Francis rested his head on the wall behind him with a sigh. He truly hated being sick, almost as much as he hated hospitals.

"Feel like shit." he croaked, wincing as he spoke.

Katrina grabbed the rag and wet it again, wiping away the sweat that had gathered on Francis' face, neck, and shoulders when they had been speaking. Francis groaned as he had the first time, leaning into the healer's gentle touch. His eyes conveyed his gratitude to her, as he was still too proud and scared to truthfully express his feelings. Katrina, who understood and recognized the look, smiled lovingly at him.

She heard him yawn as she wrung out the rag. Francis struggled to keep his eyes open, not wanting to fall asleep with his girlfriend there. It was a battle he was quickly losing, though. His illness and the medication he had taken earlier were taking their toll on him and Katrina could tell that it wouldn't be long before Francis would fall to sleep's embrace.

Katrina found that watching him try to stay awake was a little funny, though she hid it well. He reminded her of a tired toddler trying desperately to stay up past bed time.

"If you're tired, you should really get some sleep." she chided in a motherly tone, "Rest is the best thing for your body when you're sick."

"Don' wanna." he slurred, "'Sides, I have weird ass dreams when I'm sick."

Katrina had to stop herself from laughing at his petulant tone. "Everyone has strange dreams when they're sick. I'm pretty sure it has something to do with the medication. And didn't you tell me that you rarely dream? They can't be that bad."

Francis rolled his head to the side and regarded her quietly for a moment.

"I dreamed that I was growing potatoes on the moon."

Katrina's face went blank as she processed his words. "Potatoes… on the moon?"

"They were green." he stated, matter-of-factly.

"…Green moon potatoes?"

"I had to harvest them before the evil giant space bunny came and ate them."

"…Space… bunny…?"

"He was green, too."

"…"

The room fell silent, the only sound coming from the soft whirling of fan blades. It took Francis a few minutes to figure out that it was too quiet and a few minutes more, in his half asleep state, to wonder why his girlfriend had yet to acknowledge him. Glancing at the healer, he saw that her head was bowed and her small frame was trembling, her arms tightly hugging her stomach. He stared at her for a good five minutes, wondering what was wrong, until he caught a glimpse of her face.

Bright blue eyes were clenched shut as clean white teeth dug into her bottom lip in a valiant attempt to keep herself from bursting into a laughing fit.

It took a moment for it all to register in Francis' brain. When it finally did, the pyro frowned and asked, "Are you seriously laughing at me?"

That did it.

Katrina fell backwards, dissolving into giggles.

The redhead watched her with a sour expression, his frown turning into a scowl as he leaned back against the wall of the tub. He somehow managed to find the energy to cross his arms over his chest in a childish manner when they had previously been limp at his sides. "It wasn't that funny." he muttered, not actually expecting his giggling girlfriend to hear him.

However, the healer had heard him and was kind enough to force herself to stop as she sat up straight again. The goofy grin refused to leave her face, though.

"I'm sorry, Frankie." she told him, her voice apologetic even though her face was not, "The dream was kind of funny, but I was just glad that you weren't having any nightmares or seeing unpleasant memories like you usually do."

Francis wouldn't willingly admit it to anyone, but on the few occasions he actually dreamt, he would have nightmares. Nasty, grisly nightmares. The only people who knew about them were Angela, who found out because they lived under the same roof, and Katrina, who Angela told because the two females seemed to have bonded over how much they care about Francis.

He grunted in response, refusing to acknowledge that she knew about his sleeping problem.

"Really, most of the laughter was because I was relieved."

Actually, it was really half and half, but she wasn't going to tell him that and risk him becoming grumpier.

"I'd much rather you have strange dreams than be afraid to go to sleep due to those nasty nightmares."

"…Don't get scared." he mumbled, eyes dangerously close to closing.

"Mh-hm. Right. How could I forget?"

The redhead shot her a look that was very similar to a pout, proving how low on energy he really was.

"Go to sleep." she told him, "I promise that I'll be right here the whole time."

He would never say it aloud, but the healer's promise made him feel at peace. This time when he closed his eyes, Francis fell into a dreamless, but restful sleep.

**.:Line Break:.**

A few hours later, Angela Gore returned home with Francis' new sheets in hand. She paused at the stairs, contemplating whether or not she should yell to let the two teenagers know she was home. She soon decided against it and instead went down into her basement to throw the sheets into the washer so they would be clean before nightfall.

Once that was done, Angela made her way to the upstairs bathroom to check on the kids, noting how quiet it was in the house.

What she saw inside made her wish that she had her camera on her.

The two teens were out like lights. Katrina's arms were folded on the tub's edge, her head resting atop them. The couple's heads were turned towards each other, their sleeping faces serene.

Officer Gore backed out of the room with a smile and closed the door a little. As she returned downstairs she said to herself, "It wouldn't hurt to let them sleep a little while longer."

**.:Line Break:.**

So, I've been sick for a few weeks and thought of this while lying in bed. I posted it as an apology for the lack of updates to _Healing Earth_. This obviously takes place after the events of that story, but this is pretty early on in their relationship, I think. No spoilers either. I won't be posting any one-shots that mention something that hasn't yet been addressed in the main story, so you guys don't need to worry about that.

As for Francis' dream, I got that from a dream I had while sick. Only the potatoes weren't green and there wasn't an evil space rabbit. Though for some reason, the Fantastic Four were helping me grow the potatoes… Anyway, that's it. I hope you enjoyed this and will tell me what you thought in your reviews.


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